Life imitating art? Warhol-inspired soup for sale

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fifty years after artist Andy Warhol created one of the art world's most iconic images with his red and white painting of a tomato soup can, the company that inspired the work is selling limited-edition soup with designer labels.

Campbell's Soup has launched a series of four canned tomato soups with labels that pay homage to Warhol's 1962 work of art "32 Campbell's Soup Cans."

Timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Warhol's first solo exhibition, about 1.2 million cans of the tomato soup will be sold in Target stores across the United States for 75 cents each.

The company's design team, working with The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, created four different labels in vibrant combinations such as pink and teal for the tomato soup that went on sale this month.

"This is not something that we do everyday," said Liesl Henderson, director of communications for Campbell's Soup, adding that the Warhol Foundation was very protective of the artist's legacy.

"But we've maintained a collaborative relationship with the Warhol Foundation over the years, and there's a fascination, it seems, with all things Warhol."

Michael Hermann, the foundation's director of licensing, confirmed that it was very selective about whom it worked with.

"What continues to amaze me is that Warhol's influence on our culture has only grown since his untimely death 25 years ago," said Hermann. "This is the true testament to his genius."
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